KDHE Naloxone Shipment Deployed to Saline County

By NATE KING
Salina Post

The package labels hampered Saline County Health Department officials who were distributing naloxone worth about $30,000.

In September, the Saline County Health Department received 240 boxes containing nasal spray devices for naloxone hydrochloride, the drug that reverses opioid overdoses.

Who was the sender of this large shipment of life-saving medicines? The Kansas Department of Health and Environment.

Saline County Health Director Jason Tiller said his staff was not notified until two days before receiving the delivery.

“We got it (naloxone), and there was maybe a day when it might happen,” Tiller said. “So it wasn’t a total surprise 100%. When we first received it, we were excited because then we were like, ‘How can we get this out into the community?'”

A total of six counties received naloxone shipments in September. According to Tiller, KDHE determined the amount of doses shipped to each county based on data showing higher rates of illegal opioid use.

“The group that was actually responsible for it at KDHE ended up selecting six counties, I think using information from a year or two ago,” Tiller said. “There were many steps along the way that probably could have been done differently. But regardless, here we are.”

According to the KDHE, from 2012 to 2021, there have been 91 drug poisoning deaths in Saline County resulting from a drug overdose. On average, this equates to 17.55 deaths per 100,000 people per year over 10 years.

The KDHE released an assessment in September 2022 that, of Kansas’ 105 counties, 21 had “the highest relative vulnerability” to opioid overdose-related deaths.

Saline County was on that list, as were Sedgwick, Reno, Shawnee, Douglas and Sumner counties.

Tiller’s plans to distribute naloxone throughout Saline County were quickly put on temporary hold due to what he described as bureaucracy and lack of planning by KDHE.

Naloxone devices delivered to the Saline County Health Department are not labeled as over-the-counter; they are labeled as prescription only or Rx only.

According to Tiller, state laws dictate how and who can distribute naloxone by prescription only. But, he added, the two types of drugs are otherwise identical, aside from the packaging.

“It’s the same medication. For example, I might walk into CVS or another pharmacy where they have over-the-counter Naloxone, but it’s listed as OTC or over-the-counter,” Tiller said. “There are different laws and regulations around prescription-only medications. It prevents us from being able to just distribute them, which is really painful.”

Three days after SCHD received the shipment, KDHE sent an email to the health directors of the six counties that received naloxone, telling them not to distribute the drug until they provide instructions additional.

“The KDHE is like any state organization. They are large and sometimes there are disconnects between different departments and divisions,” Tiller said.

For about a month, Tiller begged KDHE for a solution via phone and email.

“Honestly, it was probably less of a conversation and more like me pestering them to see if they figured it out yet,” Tiller said.

Ultimately, KDHE hosted a webinar on October 17 to explain to health directors what its plan was for distributing naloxone to first responders.

As of November 14, all 240 boxes had been deployed to first responder groups.

According to Saline County Health Department health educator Anabel Fauto, Saline County EMS and the Salina Police Department each received 80 boxes and the Saline County Sheriff’s Office received 60 boxes.